So MLive invited the pastor of Aldersgate and Plainfield United Methodist churches to write her thoughts in a guest column. Haller also has accepted an invitation to join Rabbi David Krishef's Ethics and Religion Talk panel, so you could be hearing more from her in future columns.
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By Laurie Haller

“Hey, Laurie,” a friend e-mailed, “What’s up with the religion feature in the October 18 Grand Rapids Press, ‘Is Religion Sexist? Panelists Discuss Gender Imbalance in the Church.’ There’s a great stock picture of you, but the panel is all men, and they didn’t quote you!”

I have never fashioned myself to be a crusader for women’s rights, although many things were off-limits during my formative years simply because I was a girl. Over 30 years of ministry my primary goals have been excellence, faithfulness and the kind of spiritual depth that creates healthy and vital churches. I’ve always believed that competence speaks for itself. Yet, there are still networks of institutional power that shut women out of the highest levels of their professions, including the church.

I’ve had families leave churches I served simply because I was a woman. I’ve heard every argument under the sun for why God doesn’t allow women to be pastors. I’ve seen women clergy receive lower pay than men of equal ability and be passed over for larger churches for no apparent reason. My clothes, shoes, hair and parenting have been freely critiqued.

At the same time I have been blessed beyond measure by countless parishioners who believe that both women and men are called by God into the professional ministry and are gifted with spiritual leadership. Effective and amazing transformation occurs when clergy and laity, men and women, partner as laborers in the field of God’s kingdom.

I do not share some of the views of the Ethics and Religion Talk panelists, but it’s healthy to disagree while still respecting and honoring one another. “Is Religion Sexist?” is both a challenge and an opportunity to rethink the “isms,” those exclusionary and discriminatory practices that limit the richness of the God-given gifts that abound in our world.

Dare we talk about racism, immigration, other religions, homosexuality and the disabled, poor, elderly and unemployed without hearing their voices, engaging their stories and understanding their experiences?

Whose voice is missing at your table? How will you enlarge your borders to include those who can teach you?